El Salvador has many roadside stands that sell fresh local fruit, vegetables, as well as regionally-made cheeses. In every village, town, and city, there are open air markets that sell locally grown herbs, vegetables, fruits, cooked foods and refrescos. In the larger cities, such as San Salvador, Santa Ana, La Libertad, and San Miguel, there are many restaurants offering international fare, as well as traditional Salvadoran foods.

With the influence of "fast food" culture, the knowledge of how to make many traditional foods and drinks (refrescos) is disappearing. El Arbol de Dios, in San Salvador, is dedicated to the preservation of traditional art and food of El Salvador. There you can find comida tipica that is becoming less common, such as tamales pisque, tamales de gambrai, and atol shuco.

People in El Salvador enjoy celebrating their culture through various festivals and ceremonies and also, they are very fond of their religion. On 948th people consider that the rainy season is about to start, so they have a festival that includes both Catholic belief and indigenous fertility rituals, as they decorate their homes with fruits and flowers and pray for a wealthy season. In August, people in El Salvador celebrate El Salvador del Mundo (the Savior of the World) – a carnival takes place and people enjoy large family feasts. The Christmas menu includes the traditional tamales (a sort of corn dumpling wrapped in banana leaves), chicken or an American menu with turkey and ham.

El Salvadoran cuisine arises from Mayan and Aztec cooking traditions, but is influenced by European culture. The wide variety of vegetables, tropical fruit, fresh seafood and meat found in El Salvador has resulted in a diversity of delicious dishes unique to their cuisine. The freshness of the ingredients is extremely important. Salvadorans buy meats, fruits, and vegetables every morning for the meals of the day. Each traditional dish has a special cooking method, which is similar in all of El Salvador’s regions. Patience and attention to detail is important when cooking comida tipica. The visual attractiveness of the dish is important, but flavor is more important than superficial visual appeal.